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Darren Aronofsky defends Natalie Portman in ‘Black Swan’ controversy

29 March 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

Responding to claims that Black Swan star Natalie Portman didn’t do the majority of her on-screen dancing in her Oscar-winning role, director Darren Aronofsky released the following statement through … [Read more...] about Darren Aronofsky defends Natalie Portman in ‘Black Swan’ controversy

Benjamin Millepied gets the film bug

23 March 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

"I think directing and choreographing have such a similarity: how to work with movement and motion and narration and emotion and creating images.... And I think having the ability to control the … [Read more...] about Benjamin Millepied gets the film bug

Tales of the City – the musical, with Judy Kaye, Betsy Wolfe, Mary Birdsong and Wesley Taylor

18 March 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

Tony Award winner Judy Kaye, Betsy Wolfe, Mary Birdsong and Wesley Taylor have been cast as the eclectic denizens of 28 Barbary Lane in the world-premiere musical adaptation of Armistead Maupin's … [Read more...] about Tales of the City – the musical, with Judy Kaye, Betsy Wolfe, Mary Birdsong and Wesley Taylor

Alina Cojocaru on pointe shoes

17 March 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

This pair of ballet shoes which I wore to perform my first Tatiana in Onegin, when I was 20, lasted only two days. If I’m not performing on stage they can last up to two months. I constantly sew on … [Read more...] about Alina Cojocaru on pointe shoes

“He is the most loved actor I have ever worked with” says Jodie Foster after directing Mel Gibson in a new film

17 March 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

"He’s so incredibly loving and sensitive. He really is. He is the most loved actor I have ever worked with on a movie. And he’s not saintly, and he’s got a big mouth, and he’ll do gross things your … [Read more...] about “He is the most loved actor I have ever worked with” says Jodie Foster after directing Mel Gibson in a new film

Ted Danson on (not) being a sex symbol

17 March 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

"No one has ever hired me to take my clothes off and be sexy. No one. Not even when I was 25. But I’m funnier than I am sexy, so I’m hired to make jokes about sex; I’m not hired to do sex." … [Read more...] about Ted Danson on (not) being a sex symbol

The brain and dance: Rodolfo Llinas, professor of neuroscience at NYU School of Medicine, explains

14 March 2011 by Gramilano 2 Comments

"You have only so many variables you can hold in your brain. If those variables are stage elements, one must be actively engaged with all of them to draw a rich experience from a show. If the music … [Read more...] about The brain and dance: Rodolfo Llinas, professor of neuroscience at NYU School of Medicine, explains

Soprano Kate Royal on finding her voice in Bournemouth

13 March 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

At about the age of 15, my sister and I joined the local Big Little Theatre Company, and I learnt to stand in front of an audience and perform. It was also where I started to use my voice. We would … [Read more...] about Soprano Kate Royal on finding her voice in Bournemouth

Eddy Toussaint in Montréal on ballet for children

12 March 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

"There's nothing better for me than to see their faces when Klara [Houdet] is dancing the Dying Swan. I've seen children almost cry at the end because they think she has died. That's beautiful. That's … [Read more...] about Eddy Toussaint in Montréal on ballet for children

It’s curtains for the interval – Chris Campbell, literary manager at the Royal Court, comments

28 February 2011 by Gramilano 3 Comments

"Directors would rather there was no interval, especially the younger ones who fondly imagine the audience to be gripped by their visions. While theatres make a lot of money from intervals, there has … [Read more...] about It’s curtains for the interval – Chris Campbell, literary manager at the Royal Court, comments

It’s official: Valery Gergiev is the busiest conductor on Earth

26 February 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

Last month, statistics from the classical-music website Bachtrack confirmed this to a public that wasn't particularly surprised: Gergiev has long been notorious for a schedule that might slaughter a … [Read more...] about It’s official: Valery Gergiev is the busiest conductor on Earth

Dior suspends John Galliano after a drunken bar spat

26 February 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

Christian Dior suspended its star fashion designer John Galliano on Friday pending an inquiry into accusations that he hurled racist remarks at a couple in a Paris bar. About a week before Galliano … [Read more...] about Dior suspends John Galliano after a drunken bar spat

Some of the national treasures that went missing from the Egyptian Museum have been recovered

14 February 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

Egypt's Antiquities Ministry has recovered some of the national treasures that went missing from the Egyptian Museum during the uprising which unseated Hosni Mubarak. Items including a statue of King … [Read more...] about Some of the national treasures that went missing from the Egyptian Museum have been recovered

Stephanie Powers on Robert Wagner

13 February 2011 by Gramilano 2 Comments

“Ironically, when I was a kid I’d been in a dance class with Natalie Wood and Jill St John and all three of us went on to marry Robert Wagner; those two in real life and me on TV." … [Read more...] about Stephanie Powers on Robert Wagner

Looters destroy two Pharaonic mummies in Cairo’s Egyptian Museum

29 January 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

Looters broke into the Egyptian Museum during anti-government protests late yesterday and destroyed two Pharaonic mummies, Egypt's top archaeologist told state television. The museum in central … [Read more...] about Looters destroy two Pharaonic mummies in Cairo’s Egyptian Museum

Sienna Miller to star in Rattigan’s WW2 play ‘Flare Path’ in the West End

21 January 2011 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

Sienna Miller will star in World War Two stage drama "Flare Path" by Terence Rattigan. The play will be directed by Trevor Nunn at the Theater Royal Haymarket in London as part of the centenary … [Read more...] about Sienna Miller to star in Rattigan’s WW2 play ‘Flare Path’ in the West End

Boney M’s Bobby Farrell dies on the same day and in the same town as Rasputin… the subject of one of the band’s biggest hits

31 December 2010 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

Life sadly imitated art for Boney M's Bobby Farrell today as his death turned into an uncanny coincidence relating to one of his biggest hits. The frontman died in St Petersburg yesterday on same date … [Read more...] about Boney M’s Bobby Farrell dies on the same day and in the same town as Rasputin… the subject of one of the band’s biggest hits

Daniel Harding conducts the New Year’s Concert from Venice

24 December 2010 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

The increasingly popular New Year's Concert from the La Fenice theatre in Venice will be shown live on Italian television and relayed to many other countries around the globe. It goes in direct … [Read more...] about Daniel Harding conducts the New Year’s Concert from Venice

Playbill’s Ruth Leon celebrates The Ivy, the West End’s starriest restaurant

13 December 2010 by Gramilano Leave a Comment

The most theatrical event in London recently wasn't in a theatre — it was in a restaurant. The Ivy, in Covent Garden, is the work cafeteria for the stars, producers, directors and playwrights of … [Read more...] about Playbill’s Ruth Leon celebrates The Ivy, the West End’s starriest restaurant

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NEWS

Pacific Northwest Ballet’s free streaming of Season Encore Performance

New production of Verdi’s Aida opens 100th edition of Verona Arena Opera Festival

Italian conductor Speranza Scappucci to become Principal Guest Conductor at the Royal Opera

Winners of the UK 2023 National Dance Awards

Royal Ballet casting for autumn performances 2023 with role debuts

Lawrence Brownlee’s new album, Rising, is out tomorrow

The Florence opera house to sell its vast archive to avoid closure

La Scala Ballet Season 2023-2024

La Scala Opera Season 2023-2024

Gustavo Dudamel to leave the Paris Opera at end of 22/23 season

FEATURED POSTS

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In conversation with Marianela Nuñez

In and Out: Bolle, Gomes, Stiefel – how easy is it to be an openly gay ballet dancer?

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Franco Fagioli answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Singers’ Edition

Vittorio Grigolo’s new women’s shoes and a song for Hillary Clinton

Maurice Béjart's Gaîté parisienne with Marijn Rademaker photo by Stuttgarter Ballet

Dutch National Ballet’s Marijn Rademaker on injury and recovery

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Renata Scotto vs Maria Callas – the 1970 fight at La Scala

Anna Netrebko and Yusif Eyvazov in cover art for the Romanza album

Interview with Anna Netrebko on her son, his autism and his abandonment by his father Erwin Schrott

Joyce DiDonato answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Singers’ Edition

Gregory Kunde as Otello, photo by Matthias Baus, Teatro alla Scala 2015

Top opera singers discuss how they choose and prepare new roles

Steven McRae by Rick Guest crop

The Royal Ballet’s Steven McRae on injury: turning weakness into strength

GRAHAM SPICER

Writer, director and photographer in Milan, blogging (under the name ‘Gramilano’) about dance, opera, music and photography for people who are a bit like me and like some of the things I like. I was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. My scribblings have appeared in various publications from Woman’s Weekly to Gay Times. I write the ‘Danza in Italia’ column for Dancing Times magazine.

You can find me on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, or follow my Facebook page.

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